tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-85949781213890996332018-01-15T08:36:10.211-08:00Africa Today OnlineBrian harrodnoreply@blogger.comBlogger24194125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-40102360478797689032015-04-28T04:47:00.011-07:002015-04-28T04:47:34.466-07:00Africa: The not-so-happy continentafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <p>The 2015 World Happiness Report has been published, and South Africa doesn't even make it into the the top 10 countries in Africa.</p><div id="body_content"><p>Africa is the world’s least happy continent, according to a report produced by experts to describe how scientific “measurements of well-being can be used effectively to assess the progress of nations.</p><noscript><p><a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxYQd"><img alt="Dashboard 1 " src="http://ift.tt/1zjbhR8" class="c2" /></a></p></noscript><p>Even South Africa, which you’d think would be one of the more upbeat countries given that it’s celebrating 21 years of democracy, is ranked 113 out of the total 158 nations included in the 2015 World Happiness Report. It’s clustered with Iran, Iraq, Ukraine, Ghana and Zimbabwe with a score of around 4.6 out of a possible 10.</p><p>South Africa doesn’t even make the top 10 happy countries in Africa. It lies 12th. Our neighbours Lesotho and Swaziland are apparently happier than us, according to the measures used by the report’s authors to establish average national happiness.</p><noscript><p><a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxYQf"><img alt="Dashboard 1 " src="http://ift.tt/1zjbgN7" class="c2" /></a></p></noscript><p>It turns out that Libya scores highest (5.754 out of 10) in Africa on the “ranking of happiness 2012 -2014”, a surprise given the state of the country since its long-time leader Moammar Gadaffi was ousted and killed in 2011. Algeria, Libya’s neighbour and also on the Mediterranean coast, ranks second (5.605 out of 10).</p><p>Sub-Saharan Africa joins the ranks with Mauritius, Nigeria and Zambia in third, fourth and fifth place on the continent, but 71, 78 and 85 in the world.</p><p>Eight of the 10 countries with the lowest scores are in sub-Saharan Africa: Central African Republic, Chad, Guinea, Cote d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Afghanistan, Rwanda, Benin, Burundi and Togo. Two war-torn countries - Syria and Afghanistan - make up the ten.</p><p><strong>What is the happiness report measuring?</strong></p><p>“Happiness is increasingly considered a proper measure of social progress and a goal of public policy,” the report states.</p><p>An increasing number of national and local governments use “happiness data”&nbsp; and research - essentially a measure of subjective well-being - as a way to guide policies that could enable people to live better lives, according to the report.</p><p>The world rankings in the report use data from the Gallup World Poll as part of which respondents are asked to rate their current lives on a scale of zero to 10, with the “best possible life for them” being 10 and the “worst possible” being a 0. The rankings are from nationally representative samples for the years 2012-2014.</p><p>The life evaluations people are influenced by six factors. They are:&nbsp;</p><ul><li>1.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;GDP per capita;&nbsp;</li><li>2.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Healthy years of life expectancy;&nbsp;</li><li>3.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Social support - measured by having someone to count on times of trouble;&nbsp;</li><li>4.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Trust - measured by a percieved absence of corruption in government and business;&nbsp;</li><li>5.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Freedom to make life decisions (perceived freedom);&nbsp;</li><li>6.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Generosity - measured by recent donations, adjusted for different incomes. The first three are the most important, the report says.</li></ul><p>The report estimates the contribution of each of these factors in the valuations people give each country. “People often ask why some countries rank higher than others,” the Sustainable Development Solutions Network, which publishes the report, said on its website. Estimating the contribution of each of the six factors in the evaluations people give for each country, the authors attempt to provide an answer to that question.</p><p><strong>Why are African scores so low?</strong></p><p>Income differences are an important explanation for the difference in the scores people gave to evaluate the quality of their lives. They are as much as one-third of the total explanation. It is also the factor that is most unequally distributed among the countries included in the report.</p><p>Libya’s high ranking could be explained by the fact that its gross domestic product per capita is the second-highest in Africa, at nearly $12 000, according to the World Bank’s Development Indicators for 2013. It’s down from 2012 by just over $1 000. Only the Seychelles’s GDP per capita is higher, at $16 000 in 2013; but that country isn’t included in the Happiness Report’s rankings.</p><p>Mauritius is right up there too, at $9 500 -&nbsp; the fourth highest in Africa.</p><p>But clearly income doesn’t explain everything because Gabon, which has Africa’s third-highest GDP per capita, ranks 33rd out of the 45 African countries listed in the report. Malawi, with a GDP of $226 per person, the lowest on the World Bank’s list for 2013, is happier.</p><p>“People are more satisfied with their lives in countries with better governance,” the Happiness Report states. “Actual changes in governance quality since 2005 have led to significant changes in the quality of life,” it adds.</p><p><strong>The top-scorers</strong>&nbsp;</p><p>European countries, top the list, led by Switzerland, then Iceland, Denmark, Norway and Canada. New Zealand and Australia also make it into the top 10. Top 20 countries:</p><ul><li>1 Switzerland&nbsp;</li><li>2 Iceland&nbsp;</li><li>3 Denmark&nbsp;</li><li>4 Norway&nbsp;</li><li>5 Canada&nbsp;</li><li>6 Finland&nbsp;</li><li>7 Netherlands&nbsp;</li><li>8 Sweden&nbsp;</li><li>9 New Zealand&nbsp;</li><li>10 Australia&nbsp;</li><li>11 Israel&nbsp;</li><li>12 Costa Rica&nbsp;</li><li>13 Austria 14&nbsp;</li><li>Mexico&nbsp;</li><li>15 United States&nbsp;</li><li>16 Brazil&nbsp;</li><li>17 Luxembourg&nbsp;</li><li>18 Ireland&nbsp;</li><li>19 Belgium</li><li>20 United Arab Emirates</li></ul><p><strong>Bottom 20 countries</strong></p><ul><li>139 Republic of Congo&nbsp;</li><li>140 Comoros&nbsp;</li><li>141 Uganda&nbsp;</li><li>142 Senegal&nbsp;</li><li>143 Gabon&nbsp;</li><li>144 Niger&nbsp;</li><li>145 Cambodia&nbsp;</li><li>146 Tanzania&nbsp;</li><li>147 Madagascar&nbsp;</li><li>148 Central African Republic&nbsp;</li><li>149 Chad&nbsp;</li><li>150 Guinea&nbsp;</li><li>151 Cote d’Ivoire&nbsp;</li><li>152 Burkina Faso&nbsp;</li><li>153 Afghanistan&nbsp;</li><li>154 Rwanda&nbsp;</li><li>155 Benin&nbsp;</li><li>156 Syria&nbsp;</li><li>157 Burundi&nbsp;</li><li>158 Togo</li></ul><p>There is a four-point gap between the 10 top and 10 bottom countries. Three-quarters of this gap is accounted for by differences in the six factors, with GDP per capita, social support and healthy life expectancy the largest contributors,” the report states.</p><p>Research into well-being, aka “happiness” plays an important role in the sustainable development goals, which are likely to replace the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals this year. “The concepts of happiness and well-being are very likely to help guide progress towards sustainable development,” according to the report.</p></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-41801363555362485372015-04-28T04:47:00.009-07:002015-04-28T04:47:33.112-07:00.com | Burundi: Riot police, protesters clash for 3rd dayafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div><p>Bujumbura - Protesters in Burundi clashed with police for a third day on Tuesday in fresh demonstrations against the president's bid to cling to power for a third term, witnesses said.</p><p>At least five people have died since clashes broke out on Sunday after the ruling CNDD-FDD party, which has been accused of intimidating opponents, designated President Pierre Nkurunziza its candidate in the June 26 presidential election.</p><p>"It will continue," said Jonathan, a 26-year old unemployed protester, saying that the problem is not that Nkurunziza had been in power for too long but that "he goes against the law".</p><p>An AFP reporter said there was a heavy police presence across the capital Bujumbura, with crowds of a few hundred people broken up soon after they gathered and blocked from heading to the city centre.</p><p>The government has banned all protests and deployed large numbers of police and troops onto the streets, firing tear gas and water cannons, with hundreds of stone-throwing protesters arrested. Some of those killed were shot at close range.</p><p>The president, a former rebel leader and born-again Christian, has been in power since 2005. Opposition figures and rights groups say his attempt to stay in power goes against the constitution as well as the peace deal that ended a civil war in 2006.</p><p>Hundreds of thousands of people were killed in the 13-year conflict, and there are fears the upsurge in political tensions could plunge the country back into violence.</p><p>But his supporters say he is eligible to run again, as his first term in office was after he was elected by parliament - not directly by the people as the constitution states.</p><p><strong>Dissident held</strong></p><p>On Monday, authorities arrested a leading dissident, human rights activist Pierre-Claver Mbonimpa, and shut down the main independent radio station.</p><p>Mbonimpa's lawyer, Armel Niyongere, said he believed "the arrest is linked to his call for demonstrations".</p><p>An arrest warrant has also been issued for Vital Nshimirimana, head of a prominent NGO forum, who has gone into hiding and who told AFP that protests would continue. Police have also confirmed the arrest of 320 demonstrators.</p><p>At least 15 000 Burundians have fled the country to neighbouring Rwanda in recent weeks, according to the UN refugee agency, which has warned that those numbers could rise.</p><p>Many are fleeing threats by the pro-government militia Imbonerakure, the youth wing of the ruling party. Rights groups allege that the militia has been armed and trained over the past year in order to help Nkurunziza remain in office.</p><p>The European Union said violence, arrests of human rights activists, restrictions on the media and an outflow of people into neighbouring countries had no place in an electoral process.</p><p>The US embassy in Bujumbura said it was also watching the situation closely and warned it would "hold accountable those responsible for violence against the civilian population".</p><p>After Sunday's protest deaths, the African Union appealed to Burundi's government to "exercise the highest restraint and protect the population".</p><p>The influential Catholic Church has also spoken out against the president's plans to stay put.</p><p>The UN rights chief Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein warned recently the country was at a "crossroads" between a fair vote and a route back to its "horrendously violent past".<br /></p>AFP</div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-19185026987185664162015-04-28T04:47:00.007-07:002015-04-28T04:47:32.589-07:00Global Hospitals Group Goes Internationalafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div id="bd"><em><a href="http://ift.tt/1av08Od" class="c12">PRLog</a></em> - <strong><em>April 28, 2015</em> - <em>ZANZIBAR, Tanzania</em> --</strong> <strong>Hyderabad</strong>: Hyderabad-headquartered Global Hospitals has forayed into East Africa by launching a state-of-the- art, 125-bed facility in Zanzibar, a semi-autonomous region in the United Republic of Tanzania. <p>The facility, known as Tasakhtaa Hospitals, an Associate of Global Hospitals India, is located at Stone Town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Zanzibar, a group of islands off the mainland Tanzania. The hospital has been opened in association with Turky’s Group of Companies, one of the largest business groups of Zanzibar.</p><p>Global Hospitals, one of the fastest growing hospital chains in India, has now facilities in Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai and Mumbai. Founded by Dr. K. Ravindranath, an internationally renowned surgical gastroenterologist and an authority on minimal access surgery, Global Hospitals offers tertiary and quaternary care health services in a host of super specialties and excels in undertaking transplantation of liver, heart, lung, kidney and bone marrow.</p><p>Announcing the hospital launch, Dr. K. Ravindranath, Chairman and Managing Director of the Global Group, said that people of Zanzibar and Tanzania need no longer go abroad for quality medical care since Tasakhtaa Hospital, an Associate of Global Hospitals India, would offer world-class services at a fraction of the costs in Europe, the US and South Asian countries. The Zanzibar facility will provide primary and secondary care services, with some level of tertiary care, and will focus on promoting health and wellbeing of the citizens while preventing outbreak of diseases.</p><p>Dr. Ravindranath said that the Zanzibar facility will be one of the nodes of the Global Hospitals’ plans for a regional healthcare network. The Group is already in advanced talks regarding a tertiary care hospital in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania and also evaluating few other opportunities in rest of the Africa and Middle East as well.</p><p>Tasakhtaa Hospitals, an Associate of Global Hospitals India, in Zanzibar has been equipped with advanced laboratory services and high-end imaging modalities like 4D USG, 16-slice CT and 2D ECHO, endoscopy suites, advanced intensive care units, an advanced laparoscopy unit, and five operation theatres.</p><p>Global Hospitals has employed highly qualified and experienced medical and surgical professionals and support staff at the Zanzibar facility. In addition, the group will be offering services of experts from its Indian facilities. It will also be training local personnel in best medical practices followed around the world.</p><p>Formally opening Tasakhtaa Hospitals, an Associate of Global Hospitals India, Zanzibar President Dr. Ali Mohamed Shein thanked Dr. Ravindranath for bringing Global Hospitals’ expertise to Zanzibar and offered full support of the government. He also called upon medical staff of the hospital to meet people’s expectations by providing quality service. Health Minister Rashid Seif Suleiman said the Government wants public-private partnership (PPP) in healthcare strengthened. Acting Finance Minister Dr. Mwinyihaji Makame Mwadini said that investments in health services in the country have remained low due to shortage of skilled personnel and high costs in setting up hospitals.</p><p>Mr. Salem Turky, Chairman of Turky’s Group of Companies and Member of Parliament, said he had conceived the project almost 17 years ago and approached various hospital groups across the globe over years to help translate the vision to reality. It was only when his wife was successfully operated upon at Global Hospitals in Chennai for a complex cardiac surgery; he approached Dr. Ravindranath who agreed to partner and help improve the healthcare in Africa. &nbsp;Global Hospitals team moved very fast and got the hospital up and running in less than a year’s time.</p><p>Elaborating Dr. Ravindranath added, “Global Hospitals will provide highest quality care in Zanzibar and Tanzania. Our emphasis will be on creating joint planning - in which both the public and private sectors work together in preparing long-term healthcare strategies for the community.”</p><div><strong>Contact</strong><br />Global Hospitals<br /><a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxYzK">***@gmail.com</a></div></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-12906676366310906352015-04-28T04:47:00.005-07:002015-04-28T04:47:32.088-07:00Army chief visits Serbian peacekeepers in Cyprusafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxREr" title="" no="" new="" conditions="" for="" german=""><img src="http://ift.tt/1zjbdkj" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="(Tanjug)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 28, 2015 | 13:13 | Source: Beta, Tanjug | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxRUH">(0)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbdkn">Send comment</a></span><p>BELGRADE -- German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said in Belgrade on Tuesday that "nobody has changed the conditions on Serbia's path towards the EU."</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxRUM" title="Army chief visits Serbian peacekeepers in Cyprus"><img src="http://ift.tt/1zjbdkr" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="(Tanjug)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 28, 2015 | 13:07 | Source: Tanjug | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxUjr">(0)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbdAG">Send comment</a></span><p>Chief-of-Staff of the Serbian Army (VS) Gen. Ljubisa Dikovic has visited the soldiers deployed as part of the UN peacekeeping mission in Cyprus.</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxUjt" title="Pristina " allowed="" djuric="" travel="" to=""><img src="http://ift.tt/1zjbbZR" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="(Tanjug, file)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 28, 2015 | 12:51 | Source: Beta, Tanjug | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxUQk">(0)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbdAM">Send comment</a></span><p>PRISTINA, KOSOVSKA MITROVICA -- Director of the Serbian Government Office for Kosovo and Metohija Marko Djuric was given permission by authorities in Kosovo to visit on April 27 and 28.</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxUjy" title="Government donates EUR 100k to Ukraine"><img src="http://ift.tt/1zjbcgb" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="(Beta/AP, file)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 28, 2015 | 10:16 | Source: Beta | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxUzO">(0)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbcgg">Send comment</a></span><p>BELGRADE -- The Serbian government will make a EUR 100,000 donation to Ukraine during the International Support for Ukraine Conference held in Kiev.</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxUQs" title="PM: Serbia to help RS in wake of Zvornik attack"><img src="http://ift.tt/1zjbcgl" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="The scene of the Zvornik incident (Tanjug)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 28, 2015 | 09:35 | Source: Tanjug | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxUzU">(1)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbfbL">Send comment</a></span><p>BELGRADE -- Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic condemned <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxUzY" class="text-link" target="_blank">the attack on a police station in Zvornik</a> in which one officer was shot dead and two others were wounded,</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbfbN" title="Prime minister reveals he has " health=""><img src="http://ift.tt/1PRxUQD" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="Vucic is seen during the signing of the MoU on Monday (Tanjug)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 27, 2015 | 17:02 | Source: B92 | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbfbR">(2)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxV6T">Send comment</a></span><p>BELGRADE -- Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic announced on Monday that he has had health problems "during the past days."</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbdRh" title="Cabinet meets in mine to mark first year in office"><img src="http://ift.tt/1PRxV6Y" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="(Tanjug)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 27, 2015 | 15:15 | Source: B92, Beta, Tanjug | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbfbZ">(0)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxXvy">Send comment</a></span><p>KOLUBARA -- All those who wish to remain a part of the government "will have to engage in constant action," Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic has said.</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbdRj" title="Steinmeier: Germany is " reliable="" partner="" on="" path="" to=""><img src="http://ift.tt/1PRxV72" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="(Tanjug, file)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 27, 2015 | 14:35 | Source: Tanjug | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbdRp">(1)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxXvK">Send comment</a></span><p>BELGRADE -- "I come to Belgrade with the message that Germany will continue to be a sincere and reliable partner to Serbia on its way towards the EU," says Germany's FM.</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbdRt" title="Nikolic receives credentials from five new ambassadors"><img src="http://ift.tt/1PRxVnm" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="(Tanjug)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 27, 2015 | 14:27 | Source: Tanjug | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbe7H">(0)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxXM4">Send comment</a></span><p>BELGRADE -- President Tomislav Nikolic received on Monday the letters of credence from the newly appointed ambassadors of Bangladesh, Uruguay, Malta, Jamaica and Laos.</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbe7J" title="PM offers condolences over Nepal earthquake"><img src="http://ift.tt/1PRxXM8" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="(Beta/AP)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 27, 2015 | 10:19 | Source: Tanjug | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbe7N">(0)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxVnu">Send comment</a></span><p>BELGRADE -- Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic has sent a message of condolences to Nepalese counterpart Sushil Koirala after a M7.9 earthquake that hit the country.</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxXMe" title="Opposition DS holds protest rally in Belgrade"><img src="http://ift.tt/1PRxXMh" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="(Tanjug)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 27, 2015 | 09:28 | Source: Tanjug | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxY2x">(0)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbfIV">Send comment</a></span><p>BELGRADE -- The Democratic Party (DS) on Saturday held a rally on Republic Square in Belgrade that brought together about 5,500 supporters, according to police estimates.</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxVnB" title="Mayor addresses claim trams were hiding protesters"><img src="http://ift.tt/1zjbfIX" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="(Tanjug)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 27, 2015 | 09:21 | Source: B92 | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxVnF">(0)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbfIZ">Send comment</a></span><p>BELGRADE -- Belgrade Mayor Sinisa Mali said that the tram traffic in Belgrade was interrupted last night because of a protest of citizens.</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxY2H" title="Vucic meets with Romanian and Bulgarian counterparts"><img src="http://ift.tt/1zjbeod" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="(Tanjug)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 24, 2015 | 15:40 | Source: Tanjug | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxVDV">(0)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbeof">Send comment</a></span><p>CRAIOVA -- Serbia, Bulgaria and Romania will be able to best protect their interests together, Serbian Prime Minister said on Friday in Craiova, Romania.</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxY2J" title="President attends commemorations in Yerevan"><img src="http://ift.tt/1zjbfZi" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="(Tanjug)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 24, 2015 | 12:45 | Source: Tanjug | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxY2N">(35)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbeok">Send comment</a></span><p>YEREVAN -- Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic was in Yerevan on Friday, attending commemorations on the 100th anniversary of the massacre of Armenians.</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxVDZ" title="EP decides to send mission to Serbia"><img src="http://ift.tt/1zjbeoq" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="(Beta/AP, file)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 24, 2015 | 12:07 | Source: Blic | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxYj3">(2)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbfZo">Send comment</a></span><p>BRUSSELS -- European Parliament's Subcommittee on Human Rights has decided to send a mission to Serbia in June, the Belgrade-based Blic newspaper writes.</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxVE3" title="Medvedev invites Vucic to visit Moscow"><img src="http://ift.tt/1zjbeou" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="(Tanjug)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 24, 2015 | 10:03 | Source: Tanjug | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxYj5">(1)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbeEI">Send comment</a></span><p>BELGRADE -- Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has invited his Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vucic to visit Moscow.</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxVE9" title="Serbs to return to Kosovo assembly, government"><img src="http://ift.tt/1zjbeEM" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="" class="news" /></a> <span>April 24, 2015 | 09:24 | Source: Tanjug | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxYj9">(8)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbeEQ">Send comment</a></span><p>PRISTINA -- Following two months of absence representatives of the Serb (Srpska) List list decided on Thursday to return to Kosovo's assembly and government.</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxVUq" title="Committee adopts report on Belgrade-Pristina dialogue"><img src="http://ift.tt/1zjbeEU" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="(Tanjug, file)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 23, 2015 | 16:41 | Source: Beta, Tanjug | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxYjh">(1)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxYjj">Send comment</a></span><p>BELGRADE -- Serbian Parliaments Committee on Kosovo has adopted a report by the Government Office for KOsovo on progress in the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina.</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbgg1" title="Dacic and Thaci " shake=""><img src="http://ift.tt/1PRxVUH" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="(Tanjug, file)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 23, 2015 | 15:18 | Source: Tanjug | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbeVk">(12)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxYzE">Send comment</a></span><p>BRDO -- Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic today "spoke briefly and shook hands" with Kosovo Foreign Minister Hashim Thaci, ahead of a conference in Slovenia.</p></div><div class="article"><a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbeVm" title="Central and SE Europe mayors gather in Belgrade"><img src="http://ift.tt/1PRxWaV" width="160" height="120" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="1" align="left" alt="(Tanjug)" class="news" /></a> <span>April 23, 2015 | 14:18 | Source: Tanjug | Comments: <a href="http://ift.tt/1zjbgwk">(0)</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1PRxYzG">Send comment</a></span><p>BELGRADE -- Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said at the opening of <em>Capital Summit 2015</em> that Belgrade is "the seat of the cosmopolitan spirit in the Western Balkans."</p></div></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-59640708751009584962015-04-28T04:47:00.003-07:002015-04-28T04:47:23.922-07:00Orange reports 'almost stable' revenues, EBITDA in Q1 2015africatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div><p>Multinational telecoms giant Orange Group has published its financial results for the three months ended 31 March 2015, claiming to have continued its strong commercial performance trend of the previous quarters. In the period under review, the France-based company generated a total turnover of EUR9.672 billion (USD10.5 billion), a marginal 0.9% decline year-on-year, although Orange Group pointed out that the development represented an improvement on the 3.8% decrease in revenues reported in Q1 2014. Excluding the impact of regulatory measures revenues were stable with a 0.3% y-o-y decline in 1Q14, compared to a decline of 3.0% in the previous twelve months. The downturn was mainly attributed to the financial performance of Orange’s units in France, Spain and Belgium, but partly offset by strong growth in Africa and Middle East, led by Cote d’Ivoire, Egypt, Mali, Guinea and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (<span class="caps">DRC</span>).</p><p>Restated <span class="caps">EBITDA</span> for Q1 2015 stood at EUR2.916 billion, down 1.9% on a comparable basis from EUR2.971 billion in the year-earlier period, with a margin of 30.1% (down from 30.4%). Capital expenditures in the quarter under review totalled EUR1.190 billion, up 3.0% from EUR1.156 billion a year earlier, while network investments represented 59.2% of the group’s <span class="caps">CAPEX</span> (up 5.1% y-o-y).</p><p>In operational terms, Orange Group claimed 246.918 million customers worldwide at the end of March 2015, up from 240.569 million twelve months earlier. Mobile subscribers accounted for 188.184 million of these customer accounts. In its domestic market, Orange reported that its subscriber base reached 27.280 million customers, a 1.4% increase year-on-year (+366,000 net additions). Elsewhere, Orange reported subscriber growth in the likes of Spain (where it claimed a user base of 12.768 million), Poland (15.518 million) and Moldova (2.854 million), while Belgium and Luxembourg had signed up a combined total of 3.891 million mobile users by end-March 2015, down from 3.970 million year ago. Total mobile customers in Other European countries reached 48.185 million, down from 51.129 million in 1Q14, while Africa and the Middle East contributed a total of 100.552 million, an increase of 10.1% y-o-y, mainly due to growth in Mali, Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea and Cameroon. Orange’s consolidated fixed broadband user base climbed to 16.134 million by end-March, a 3.4% improvement on the 15.602 million reported in Q1 2014, with France leading the pack in terms of net additions (282,000), followed by Spain (239,000).</p><p>Commenting on the results, Stephane Richard, chairman and <span class="caps">CEO</span> of the Orange Group, said: ‘Orange’s commercial performance in the first quarter of 2015 has been very strong across our entire geographic footprint. These numbers testify to the quality of our offers that are tailored to the needs of our customers, as well as the effectiveness of our strategy of differentiation through investment in very high-speed broadband networks. The benefits are already starting to show: we’ve signed up over ten million 4G customers Europe-wide and fibre is proving to be a genuine driver of customer acquisition in both France and Spain. Globally, we now have 247 million customers, of which over 100 million are in Africa and the Middle East. These achievements have enabled us to effectively stabilise our revenues, excluding the impact of regulation.’</p></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-36897141906565752172015-04-28T04:47:00.001-07:002015-04-28T04:47:23.576-07:00FG names Abuja streets after Jonathan, Sambo, Muazu, Atiku, Dangote, othersafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div id="entryContainer"><p>By Henry Umoru</p><p>ABUJA—In what appeared as parting gifts ahead of the official hand-over date of May 29 to another government, the Federal Government, Monday, named the yet to be commissioned Inner Southern Expressway which dissects Abuja city centre after President Goodluck Jonathan.</p><p>Minister of the Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, Senator Bala Mohammed&nbsp; disclosed that the FCT Administration has honoured eminent Nigerians and other Africans by naming major streets in Asokoro Extension, Guzape, Wupa, Wuye and Maitama Extension districts as well as expressways and roads after them.</p><p>According to him, a major road in Wuye district was named after Vice President Namadi Sambo, and the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Adamu Muazu.&nbsp; Bala Mohammed also named a street after himself.</p><div id="attachment_478155" class="wp-caption alignnone c2"><img class="size-full wp-image-478155" src="http://ift.tt/1zjbd3L" alt="Nigeria's president Goodluck Jonathan (L) and vice president Namadi Sambo wave to supporters during a presidential primary in Abuja, on December 10, 2014. Jonathan is expected to be formally endorsed as the PDP candidate, with no other challengers, for the next year presidential elections. AFP PHOTO" width="412" height="250" /><p class="wp-caption-text">File: Nigeria’s president Goodluck Jonathan (L) and vice president Namadi Sambo</p></div><p>While the yet to be commissioned Inner Southern Expressway which dissects Abuja city centre was named after President Jonathan, the longest Wuye district Boulevard express road measuring 1,730 metres was named after former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.</p><p>Other beneficiaries were&nbsp; former Senate President, late Dr. Chuba Okadigbo, former Speaker of House of Representatives and Katsina State Governor-elect, Hon. Aminu Bello Masari, former Chief Justice of the Federation, Justice Dahiru Musdapha, business moguls, Femi Otedola and Aliko Dangote.</p><p>Other prominent personalities also honoured by naming streets after them in Asokoro district extension include former Secretary General of the United Nations, Mr. Kofi Anan, South African anti-Apartheid activist, late Walter Sisulu, former President of Sudan, Gaafar al-Nimeiry, former Minister of State for FCT, late Prof. Miriam Ikejiani-Clark, former Chief Justice of the Federation, Justice Idris Legbo Kutigi, and 16 others.</p><div class="crunchify-social"><h5>SHARE ON</h5><a class="crunchify-link crunchify-facebook" href="http://ift.tt/1PRxU2V" target="_blank">Facebook</a><a class="crunchify-link crunchify-googleplus" href="http://ift.tt/1zjbbJl" target="_blank">Google+</a><a class="crunchify-link crunchify-buffer" href="http://ift.tt/1PRxRnS" target="_blank">Buffer</a></div></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-42574076770241233012015-04-27T19:17:00.009-07:002015-04-27T19:17:28.091-07:00'We have lost a gem': Friend mourns Nepal quake victim Renu Fotedarafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div class="articleBody" itemprop="articleBody"><div id="video-player-content" class="cT-imageMultimedia" itemprop="video" itemscope="" itemtype="http://ift.tt/yp0nX0"><div class="overlay overlayAutoPlay"><a class="previous close" href="http://ift.tt/VSVnFQ">Return to video</a><h3>Video settings</h3><p>Please <a href="http://ift.tt/VSVnFQ" class="overlayLogIn trackingClick" title="Log in" data-tracking-types="sc" data-sc="{&quot;linkTrackVars&quot;:&quot;events,eVar56&quot;,&quot;linkTrackEvents&quot;:&quot;event5&quot;,&quot;events&quot;:&quot;event5&quot;,&quot;eVar56&quot;:&quot;VideoAutoPlay_Login&quot;}" data-sc-tl="login">Log in</a> to update your video settings</p></div><div class="overlay overlayPlayCountdown overlayPrePlay"><p>Video will begin in <span class="playCountdownCounter">5</span> seconds.</p></div><div class="overlay overlaySettings"><a class="previous close" href="http://ift.tt/VSVnFQ">Return to video</a><h3>Video settings</h3><p>Please <a href="http://ift.tt/VSVnFQ" class="overlayLogIn trackingClick" title="Log in" data-tracking-types="sc" data-sc="{&quot;linkTrackVars&quot;:&quot;events,eVar56&quot;,&quot;linkTrackEvents&quot;:&quot;event5&quot;,&quot;events&quot;:&quot;event5&quot;,&quot;eVar56&quot;:&quot;VideoSettings_Login&quot;}" data-sc-tl="login">Log in</a> to update your video settings</p></div><div class="fdVideoWof"><h4 itemprop="name">Nepal earthquake: Melbourne woman killed</h4><p itemprop="description">Mother of two Renu Fotedar was on Mount Everest when she killed by an avalanche triggered by a massive earthquake.</p><span class="gone" itemprop="duration">PT0M47S</span> <span class="gone" itemprop="width">620</span> <span class="gone" itemprop="height">349</span><ul><li class="autoplay">Autoplay <strong>On</strong><a href="http://ift.tt/VSVnFQ" data-autoplayoverlay="true">Off</a></li><li><a href="http://ift.tt/VSVnFQ" data-kampylefeedback="true">Video feedback</a></li><li class="last"><a href="http://ift.tt/VSVnFQ" data-settingsoverlay="true">Video settings</a></li></ul></div></div><ul><li><a href="http://ift.tt/1b88TB1" title="">Watch: Everest base camp</a>&nbsp;<a href="http://ift.tt/1b88TB1" title="">avalanche</a></li><li><a href="http://ift.tt/1Ihg5YR" title="">Melbourne woman Renu Fotedar killed</a></li><li><a href="http://ift.tt/1b88TRf" title="">Experiencing the quake first-hand</a></li><li><a href="http://ift.tt/1Ihg7Qy" title="">How you can help</a></li></ul><p>Melbourne's Kashmiri community has lost a "gem" in the earthquake in Nepal, a close friend of Australian citizen Renu Fotedar&nbsp;has said.</p><blockquote class="cN-quote"><p>She had a clarity of mind. She was a powerhouse.<span>&nbsp;</span></p></blockquote><p>Avinash Raina said Ms Fotedar&nbsp;was a warm and giving person who impressed all who met her.</p><div class="cT-imagePortrait"><img alt="Former Melbourne resident Renu Fotedar: 'She was an inspiration to us all'." title="" src="http://ift.tt/1b88TRh" itemprop="image" /><p>Former Melbourne resident Renu Fotedar: 'She was an inspiration to us all'. <cite><i>Photo: Facebook</i></cite></p></div><p>"She was an inspiration to all of us," Mr Raina said.</p><p>"Always smiling about what she was doing and spiritual with yoga and meditation. We have lost a gem," he said.</p><p>Ms Fotedar was travelling alone with a tour group when Saturday's&nbsp;devastating earthquake&nbsp;triggered an avalanche, killing at least 19 people at Mount Everest Base Camp 1.</p><p>Ms&nbsp;Fotedar&nbsp;last contacted family at a nearby&nbsp;camp and was to climb to Base Camp 1 on April 24.&nbsp;</p><p>Ms Fotedar's&nbsp;husband Lokesh Fotedar has gone to Nepal to retrieve his wife's&nbsp;body for cremation in India, Mr Raina said. She is survived by her two sons -&nbsp;Australian National University graduate&nbsp;Tushar, and Sahil, a high-school student.</p><p>"It is hard to think what would be going on for them right now. Both are very sincere boys. It would very hard for them, especially the younger one. They were a close family and very close with their mother," Mr Raina&nbsp;said.</p><p>Ms Fotedar had&nbsp;lived in Switzerland for the last few years but lived in Warrandyte and Donvale when Mr Raina first met her.&nbsp;She was active in the Kashmiri Pandits Cultural Association for many years which was where Mr Raina first met her.</p><p>A spiritual and leadership counsellor, she had started her own business, Athena International Academy of Behavioural Sciences and Evolutionary Human Skills, which she said was&nbsp;aimed at&nbsp;helping people manage stress and to be productive.&nbsp;</p><p>She edited a quarterly magazine on spirituality and leadership, called <em>Sophia</em>. In the first edition she described growing up in Kashmir, where she was drawn to the&nbsp;philosophy&nbsp;of Kashmiri Shaivism, and became interested in Greek mythology - both formed the basis of her spirituality.</p><p>"She was a very calm, very centred person and very dynamic," Mr Raina said.</p><p>"She had a clarity of mind. She was a powerhouse," he said.</p><p>He said there had been plans for her to speak at the&nbsp;Australia India Institute at Melbourne University later this year.&nbsp;</p><p>Ms Fotedar loved to travel and be with nature, he said. She had previously travelled to Africa to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. She had also&nbsp;been on a&nbsp;10-day retreat where she lived in the open air, surviving on water only,&nbsp;in a confined two-metre space near Alice Springs.</p><p>A prayer service will be held for Ms Fotedar&nbsp;at the&nbsp;Shirdi Sai Sansthan,&nbsp;Sai Baba Temple, in&nbsp;Halley Avenue Camberwell, on Tuesday at 7.30pm.</p></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-32462242912988783792015-04-27T19:17:00.007-07:002015-04-27T19:17:26.947-07:00For African migrants used to danger, Islamic State poses new threatafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div><div class="c14"><a href="http://ift.tt/1lQDKFN" target="_blank"><img class="stripes-bug" src="http://ift.tt/1pNqluF" /></a></div><p>JERUSALEM — Tesfay Kidane's troubles began with a simple request: He wanted to go to his brother's wedding.</p><p>Doing mandatory national service in the east African country of Eritrea, Kidane asked his commander for permission for a leave to attend the wedding. The request was denied, starting a chain of events that friends say sent Kidane on a desperate trek across the Egyptian desert, into an Israeli detention center, and then back to Africa, culminating with his apparent death at the hands of Islamic State captors in Libya.</p><p>His tale reflects the deep sense of desperation that has driven hundreds of thousands of Africans to risk their lives as they flee war, poverty and hardship, and the struggle that Israel and European countries face as they cope with an unwanted and overwhelming influx of new arrivals.</p><p>Kidane, who was about 30, is thought to have been among dozens of Christian Africans who were shot or beheaded on a Libyan beach in a video released by the Islamic State group this week.</p><p>"We are really sorry. We are very sad," said Aman Beyene, an Eritrean migrant who said he was friends with Kidane. "He was a very kind person. He was a hard worker."</p><p>While the identities of the dead have not been officially confirmed, Beyene, speaking from the Israeli detention center where he knew Kidane, said he and other members of Israel's Eritrean migrant community instantly recognized their compatriot in the video.</p><p>Beyene said the community had spoken to someone in Libya who saw the incident, and the Hotline for Refugees and Migrants, an Israeli advocacy group that helps African migrants, said Kidane was a relative of one of its workers. The hotline said it believed that two other people seen in the video had also spent time in Israeli detention.</p><p>Kidane's story mirrors those of tens of thousands of Africans who have made their way to Israel in recent years. Most of these migrants came from Eritrea — a nation with one of the world's most dismal human rights records. Among the many abuses that citizens face is years of forced military conscription.</p><p>Beyene, himself a former Eritrean conscript, said "national service" is grueling and boring work. He said that after being barred from going to his brother's wedding, Kidane made plans to sneak away but was arrested three days before the ceremony. "He immediately decided to leave the country," Beyene said.</p><p>Kidane took a perilous land route through war-torn Sudan, and with the help of smugglers, through Egypt's Sinai desert into Israel.</p><p>At first, the Africans were welcomed into Israel — a country with a long history of serving as a refuge for Jews fleeing persecution and hardship — and found menial jobs in hotels and restaurants. Kidane worked as a dishwasher in a Tel Aviv restaurant, Beyene said.</p><p>But as their numbers grew, Israel began to take a hard line, saying the swelling numbers of Africans were threatening the country's Jewish character.</p><p>Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu built a fence along the Egyptian border that has all but halted the influx. Authorities, meanwhile, began cracking down on the migrants, making it harder for them to work, and sending some of them, including Kidane and Beyene, to a newly built detention center in the isolated Negev desert.</p><p>Those who were placed in the Holot center were given a difficult choice: Stay in detention or accept a one-way ticket back to an undisclosed third African country. While the Supreme Court has struck down some policies, hundreds of migrants remain in detention, with more than 40,000 others living in uncertainty inside the country.</p><p>Kidane was living in Holot — a facility that allows residents to leave during the day but not hold jobs — when he came home late one day. After breaking curfew, he was ordered last summer to be transferred to the nearby Saharonim prison, where conditions are even more severe. That was the breaking point, Beyene said.</p><p>"He gave up and decided to try another country, maybe Europe. That's why he was in Libya," he said. It was the last time they would speak, though Beyene kept tabs on him through other friends.</p><p>Elizabeth Tsurkov, a worker at the hotline center, said such stories are typical. She said that Israeli authorities almost never grant migrants' asylum requests — and are now putting pressure on them to leave the country voluntarily, with threats of detention and false promises of opportunities in African countries.</p><p>"The idea is, 'We have these people here. Let's see how we can reduce the number,'" she said.</p><p>Israel's Interior Ministry, which oversees policy toward the migrants, declined comment.</p><p>Since the migrants could face harm if they return to their homeland, Israel has arranged to send them to third countries — with Rwanda and Uganda believed to be the most common destinations. Despite promises they will be welcome, migrants have been arrested or had their identification papers confiscated, according to the hotline. Many, like Kidane, quickly move on.</p><p>Kidane is believed to have gone from Rwanda to Uganda, Sudan and then Libya. He was apparently arrested by Islamic State militants on his way to Tripoli, where he hope to make the harrowing trip by sea to Europe. Beyene said Kidane had a brother in Norway.</p><p>There may have been more Eritreans and Ethiopians seized and killed by the Islamic State group in Libya beyond those shown beheaded or shot in the video that apparently included Kidane.</p><p>Jalal Tag-Eddin, a Sudanese refugee in Tripoli, told The Associated Press he managed to free five Eritrean and Ethiopian minors from IS custody. He said the young men told him a total of 200 were seized by the militants after entering Libya about three months ago and were held at an IS camp near the city of Sirte.</p><p>The Islamic militants singled out the Christians and began to kill them, the minors said, according to Tag-Eddin. First a group of 54 were killed, then a second group of 30, apparently those shown in the video.</p><p>Islamic State militants are just the latest challenge for African migrants seeking opportunity in Europe.</p><p>On Saturday, more than 800 people drowned when a boat packed with migrants trying to reach Europe sank in the Mediterranean Sea, making it the worst such incident of its kind, according to the U.N. refugee agency.</p><p>Facing the new threat of Islamic State militants, Beyene said that Holot detainees are terrified and prefer to stay locked up than leave to an uncertain fate in Africa. "It's better to stay in prison," he said.</p><p>He said he hoped the death of his friend would draw attention to the plight of the Eritreans.</p><p>"The whole world knows what's going on in Eritrea," he said. "People are dying.</p><p>"I hope the government will solve the problem and give us a chance until our country becomes free and we can go back to our country," he said.</p></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-23471932916757645482015-04-27T19:17:00.005-07:002015-04-27T19:17:25.987-07:00Dissolve ADB board and sack MD - " Angry workersafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div id=""><noscript><p><img src="http://ift.tt/L5qbm7" class="c1" height="1" width="1" alt="" /></p></noscript><div id="logo"><a href="http://ift.tt/1mgUbge"><img src="http://ift.tt/XgEYQV" border="0" width="300" height="48" /></a></div><p>Business News of 2015-04-28</p><p><img src="http://ift.tt/1Ihg5Im" border="0" width="300" height="247" /> The workers of the Agricultural Development Bank (adb) are calling for the immediate dissolution of the board of directors of the bank and the dismissal of the Managing Director, Stephen Kpordzih to save the financial institution from imminent collapse.</p><p>“We want the immediate and unconditional dissolution of the board of directors and the immediate and unconditional removal of the managing director” a resolution passed at an emergency national executive committee (NEC) meeting of the ADB staff union in Accra stated. The workers are further demanding a “forensic audit of the bank within the shortest possible time.”</p><p>The bank which was set up in 1965 by Act 286 is one of the only two wholly publicly-owned banks in Ghana. The Government owns 52% of the shareholding, with the remaining 48% held by the Financial Investment Trust on behalf of the Bank of Ghana.</p><p>The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently gave the bank the approval to go ahead and offer its shares to the public. The bank is expected to offload a little over 100 million shares to the public by the end of this month with the hope to give out 75 percent of the Bank and raise about 300 million Ghana cedis.</p><p>Proceeds from the offer are expected to expand the bank’s operations. But in an interview with Citi News the chairman of the ADB workers union Mark Imoru insists that the workers are of the considered opinion that “instead of listing on the stock market the bank should rather embark on a massive recovery exercise to rake in the 600 million Ghana cedis that we have out there in unrecovered loans.”</p><p>The workers are also asserting that “contrary to the impression being created by management over the years that the bank is doing well, our financials for 2014 indicates that the bank is fast sinking and urgent steps needs to be taken to salvage the dwindling fortunes of the bank”.</p><p>Meanwhile the Union of Industry, Commerce and Finance Workers (UNICOF) is asking the ADB staff to exercise restraint as they pursue the issue on their behalf.</p><p>In an interview with Citi News the general secretary of Unicof John Esiape also asked the management of the bank to put on hold their initial public offer until the concerns raised by the workers are addressed amicably.</p><p>“If there is no ADB there will be no staff loan, our struggle is to ensure that we keep ADB intact and viable, our ultimate objective is for ADB to continue to be the kind of Bank that it was established to be, it was strategic.”</p><p>Mr. Esiape further questioned the processes that have led to the current situation saying “it was established by an act of parliament, how that act was circumvented to get us where we are is also a subject for discussion, because our parliamentarians must answer.”</p><p>He then assured the workers of ADB that “labour will not sit down and have these assets go the way others have gone, we all know about the story of Anglogold Ashanti its nothing now.”</p><div class="navigation"><em>Source:</em> Citifmonline.com<br /><a href="http://ift.tt/1b88VsA">« Previous</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1Ihg5Is">Next »</a><p>News Categories</p><div class="navigation"><a href="http://ift.tt/1mgUdVm">Top Stories</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1mgUdVo">Business</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1mgUdVt">Sports</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1mgUbwN">Diaspora</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1mgUebK">Entertainment</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1mgUbN4">Features</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/XMN2bH">Life</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/1mgUebM">Regional</a> | <a href="http://ift.tt/XMMZgg">Politics</a></div><p>Site Menu</p></div></div><div><noscript><p><img src="http://ift.tt/L5qbm7" class="c1" height="1" width="1" alt="" /></p></noscript><div id="logo"><a href="http://ift.tt/1mgUbge"><img src="http://ift.tt/XgEYQV" border="0" width="300" height="48" /></a></div><p>Business News of 2015-04-28</p><p><img src="http://ift.tt/1Ihg5Im" border="0" width="300" height="247" /> The workers of the Agricultural Development Bank (adb) are calling for the immediate dissolution of the board of directors of the bank and the dismissal of the Managing Director, Stephen Kpordzih to save the financial institution from imminent collapse.</p><p>“We want the immediate and unconditional dissolution of the board of directors and the immediate and unconditional removal of the managing director” a resolution passed at an emergency national executive committee (NEC) meeting of the ADB staff union in Accra stated. The workers are further demanding a “forensic audit of the bank within the shortest possible time.”</p><p>The bank which was set up in 1965 by Act 286 is one of the only two wholly publicly-owned banks in Ghana. The Government owns 52% of the shareholding, with the remaining 48% held by the Financial Investment Trust on behalf of the Bank of Ghana.</p><p>The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently gave the bank the approval to go ahead and offer its shares to the public. The bank is expected to offload a little over 100 million shares to the public by the end of this month with the hope to give out 75 percent of the Bank and raise about 300 million Ghana cedis.</p><p>Proceeds from the offer are expected to expand the bank’s operations. But in an interview with Citi News the chairman of the ADB workers union Mark Imoru insists that the workers are of the considered opinion that “instead of listing on the stock market the bank should rather embark on a massive recovery exercise to rake in the 600 million Ghana cedis that we have out there in unrecovered loans.”</p><p>The workers are also asserting that “contrary to the impression being created by management over the years that the bank is doing well, our financials for 2014 indicates that the bank is fast sinking and urgent steps needs to be taken to salvage the dwindling fortunes of the bank”.</p><p>Meanwhile the Union of Industry, Commerce and Finance Workers (UNICOF) is asking the ADB staff to exercise restraint as they pursue the issue on their behalf.</p><p>In an interview with Citi News the general secretary of Unicof John Esiape also asked the management of the bank to put on hold their initial public offer until the concerns raised by the workers are addressed amicably.</p><p>“If there is no ADB there will be no staff loan, our struggle is to ensure that we keep ADB intact and viable, our ultimate objective is for ADB to continue to be the kind of Bank that it was established to be, it was strategic.”</p><p>Mr. Esiape further questioned the processes that have led to the current situation saying “it was established by an act of parliament, how that act was circumvented to get us where we are is also a subject for discussion, because our parliamentarians must answer.”</p><p>He then assured the workers of ADB that “labour will not sit down and have these assets go the way others have gone, we all know about the story of Anglogold Ashanti its nothing now.”</p><div class="navigation"><em>Source:</em><p class="readability-styled">Citifmonline.com</p><br /><a href="http://ift.tt/1b88VsA">« Previous</a><p class="readability-styled">|</p><a href="http://ift.tt/1Ihg5Is">Next »</a><p>News Categories</p><div class="navigation"><a href="http://ift.tt/1mgUdVm">Top Stories</a><p class="readability-styled">|</p><a href="http://ift.tt/1mgUdVo">Business</a><p class="readability-styled">|</p><a href="http://ift.tt/1mgUdVt">Sports</a><p class="readability-styled">|</p><a href="http://ift.tt/1mgUbwN">Diaspora</a><p class="readability-styled">|</p><a href="http://ift.tt/1mgUebK">Entertainment</a><p class="readability-styled">|</p><a href="http://ift.tt/1mgUbN4">Features</a><p class="readability-styled">|</p><a href="http://ift.tt/XMN2bH">Life</a><p class="readability-styled">|</p><a href="http://ift.tt/1mgUebM">Regional</a><p class="readability-styled">|</p><a href="http://ift.tt/XMMZgg">Politics</a></div><p>Site Menu</p></div></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-85059473394141316642015-04-27T19:17:00.003-07:002015-04-27T19:17:23.878-07:00Constitution Amendment: FG asks court to stop N' Assemblyafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div id="entryContainer"><p>By Ikechukwu Nnochiri</p><p><strong>A</strong><strong>BUJA</strong>—Determined to sideline the proposed amendments to the 1999 constitution, the Federal Government, yesterday, prayed the Supreme Court to issue an order of interlocutory injunction against both chambers of the National Assembly.</p><div id="attachment_509863" class="wp-caption alignleft c2"><a href="http://ift.tt/1b88Tkg"><img class="size-full wp-image-509863" src="http://ift.tt/1FWQuou" alt="President Jonathan " width="412" height="250" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">President Jonathan</p></div><p>The government urged the court to stop the federal lawmakers from taking any further step towards passing the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (Fourth Alteration) Act, 2015, into law, until hearing and final determination of the suit pending before the apex court.</p><p>It filed the application through the Attorney General of the Federation, Mohammed Bello Adoke, SAN, pursuant to Order 3 Rule 14 of the Supreme Court Rules as amended.</p><p>Meanwhile, Adoke has already secured the services of another Senior Advocate of Nigeria and a former AGF, Chief Bayo Ojo, to handle the matter on his behalf.</p><p>The AGF told the Supreme Court that the National Assembly was determined to proceed with the passing of the constitutional amendments by overriding the veto of same by President Goodluck Jonathan, despite the fundamental nature of the issues raised against the proposed alterations to the constitution.</p><p>The AGF argued that it would be in the interest of the whole Nigerian Polity that the issues in the substantive suit are resolved one way or the other by the court, before the National Assembly could proceed further on the proposed alterations to the constitution.</p><p>According to the AGF; “Hon. Samson Osagie, Minority Whip of the House of Representative, said to the whole world at a Press Conference purposely called on the issue in this suit that despite any case filed against the said Act (which actually is a Bill); the National Assembly would go ahead to pass it into law. ”</p><p>The AGF contended that the balance? of convenience tilts in favour of resolution of the legal grey areas concerning the proposed constitution amendment, before any further step could be taken on the Bill.</p><p>In an affidavit deposed to by one Theophilus Okwute, a lawyer in the chambers of Chief Bayo Ojo, SAN and Co, which was attached to the application, he averred before the apex court thus; “That I listened to Hon. Samson Osagie, the Minority Whip of the House of Representative on the <em>NTA</em> 9 o’clock news on 24/04/2015 when he said that the National Assembly would go ahead to pass the (Fourth Alteration) Act (Bill) 2015 into law despite any Court action because no order had been made against the National Assembly to restrain it from doing so.</p><p>“That by that very disposition of the said Hon. Samson Osagie who spoke to the press as a Principal Officer of the Defendant/Respondent, it is clear that the Defendant/Respondent is determined to proceed to pass the Fourth Alteration Act (sic) into Law despite the pendency of the substantive suit herein.</p><p>“That fundamental questions were raised by the Plaintiff/Applicant on the proposed alterations to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria through the Fourth Alteration Act, 2015 which is in issue in this suit.</p><p>“That it will be in the larger interest of Nigeria that those issues be resolved before the Defendant/Respondent takes any further step in giving effect to the proposed alterations to the Constitution.</p><p>“That with the utterances of Hon. Samson Osagie at the Press Conference earlier alluded to in this affidavit, it is clear that the Defendant is determined to ignore the proceeding before this Honourable Court on the proposed alteration and proceed to give effect to the alterations to the Constitution.”</p><p>“That the Defendant/Respondent will not lose anything or suffer any prejudice if this application is granted.</p><p>“That the balance of convenience tilts in favour of granting this application. That the whole Nigerian legal system shall be put into confusion if the Defendant/Respondent proceeds to give effect to the Fourth Alteration Act (Bill) 2015 and this suit succeeds such that the Constitution remain unaltered, meaning that the Act is void and or no effect.</p><p>“That the Constitution is the basic law of Nigeria and should only be amended following due process. That it will be in the interest of justice to grant this application”, he stated.</p><p>FG had asked the apex court to nullify all the proposed amendments to the constitution.</p><p>In its originating summons, it prayed the Supreme Court to declare as unconstitutional, the amendments as proposed by the lawmakers.</p><p>”Specifically, FG urged the court to set aside sections 3, 4, 12, 14, 21, 23, 36, 39, 40, 43 and 44 of the Fourth Alteration Act, 2015, purportedly passed by the Defendant.</p><p>It contended that the said Fourth Alteration Act 2015, was not passed with the mandatory requirement of four-fifths majority of members of the Defendant (National Assembly), and the mandatory due processes provided for under the relevant sections of the extant Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, as amended.</p><p>”As a follow up. President Jonathan equally wrote separate letters to the Senate President, David Mark and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal, asking them to halt moves by members of the National Assembly to go ahead with the constitution amendment process.</p><p>”In the letter which was served on them by the AGF, President Jonathan urged them to restrain other federal ‘legislators from tampering with the 1999 constitution, as issues regarding its proposed amendments, are already before the Supreme Court.”</p><div class="crunchify-social"><h5>SHARE ON</h5><a class="crunchify-link crunchify-facebook" href="http://ift.tt/1b88Tki" target="_blank">Facebook</a><a class="crunchify-link crunchify-googleplus" href="http://ift.tt/1Ihg5Ic" target="_blank">Google+</a><a class="crunchify-link crunchify-buffer" href="http://ift.tt/1b88Vsn" target="_blank">Buffer</a></div></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-26766176158268850572015-04-27T19:17:00.001-07:002015-04-27T19:17:22.854-07:00Judicial corruption: NJC asks Appeal Court to declare ex-Abuja CJ guiltyafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div id="entryContainer"><p>By Ikechukwu Nnochiri</p><p><strong>A</strong><strong>BUJA</strong>—The National Judicial Council, NJC, has asked the Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja to affirm the guilty verdict it entered against the former Chief Judge of the Federal Capital Territory, Justice Lawal Hassan Gummi, in 2013, after he was found culpable on acts of judicial corruption.</p><p>The council, headed by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Justice Mahmud Mohammed, argued that Justice Gummi, who relinquished his post to become an Emir in Zamfara State, abused the oath he took as a judicial officer, before vacating office as the FCT CJ.</p><p>Gummi, whose tenure as CJ would have ended this year, resigned his position barely three weeks after the NJC commenced investigation into a petition that sought his sack over alleged judicial impropriety.</p><p>His resignation came a day after he was crowned new Emir of Gummi Community in Zamfara State.</p><p>Despite his voluntary decision to willingly bow out of the Bench, the NJC still went ahead and constituted a panel that probed the allegation of judicial malpractice that was levelled against him.</p><p>In a statement it issued through its Acting Director of Information, Mr Soji Oye, the NJC, on July 18, 2013, said it had, at the end of its 63rd meeting, deliberated on the Report and recommendation of its committee that investigated the petition forwarded to it by Nestello Gateway Group in Suit No. FCT/HC/CV/486/10 against Hon. Justice Lawal Hassan Gummi, and found him culpable.</p><p>The Council said the CJ unduly interfered and perverted the course of justice in the case between Nestello Gateway Group and Governor Abdul’aziz Yari of Zamfara State.</p><p>NJC said that findings by its committee revealed that the ex-CJ interfered in the execution of a judgement delivered by Justice Jude Okeke of the FCT High Court, Abuja.</p><div class="crunchify-social"><h5>SHARE ON</h5><a class="crunchify-link crunchify-facebook" href="http://ift.tt/1Ihg4UJ" target="_blank">Facebook</a><a class="crunchify-link crunchify-googleplus" href="http://ift.tt/1b88T3Z" target="_blank">Google+</a><a class="crunchify-link crunchify-buffer" href="http://ift.tt/1Ihg5rY" target="_blank">Buffer</a></div></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-23803655587339455242015-04-27T18:42:00.011-07:002015-04-27T18:42:54.303-07:00The Gambia: World Bank Supports Efforts to Boost Nutrition and Health ...africatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div><p><strong>WASHINGTON, April 27, 2015</strong>—The World Bank Group’s Board of Executive Directors approved a total of US$5 million in new financing for The Gambia to strengthen primary health care services and improve community nutrition for the country’s most vulnerable children and women. The project is expected to reach approximately 477,000 direct beneficiaries (children under five and women aged 15-49 years) by 2019.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p>The additional financing in the form of an International Development Association (IDA*) grant and a credit supports the original <strong>Maternal and Child Nutrition and Health Results Project</strong>, which brings community-based nutrition and primary health care services for women and children in three of the country’s poorest regions: the Upper River, the Central River, and the North Bank West Regions. The additional financing expands the coverage to the North Bank East and Lower River Regions.</p><p>The Gambia has been affected by the threat of two potential emergencies. The Ebola epidemic could surface in The Gambia at any time, which, given the weak capacity of the health system to respond effectively, is a major concern. Even with no Ebola cases reported till now, the tourism industry has taken a substantial hit. In addition, the 2014 rains arrived late and were erratic, affecting agriculture, which is heavily dependent on rain and the main source of livelihood for two thirds of the population. In The Gambia, maternal and child nutrition and health outcomes have to a large extent stagnated or even deteriorated. As a result, the maternal mortality ratio as well as the prevalence of stunting for children under-five in The Gambia are high and lag behind several nearby countries.</p><p>The additional financing would consolidate early achievements and support the government’s response to the dual emergencies enhancing food and nutrition security activities, scaling up results-based financing for community nutrition and primary health care services, strengthening the Ebola response, and replenishing the initial reallocation of funds for Ebola. Enhancing household food security, community nutrition and primary health care will strengthen the resilience of communities and households to food and nutrition insecurity shocks.</p><p><em>&nbsp;“This project is very innovative in that it combines the purchase of health and nutrition results from communities and health facilities through results-based financing,”</em> <strong>said Rifat Hasan, World Bank Task Team Leader for this Project.</strong> “<em>Through this reform, health facilities and communities are motivated to work harder and more closely together to improve the delivery and increase the use of better quality services for children and women’s nutrition and health. &nbsp;By simultaneously addressing supply-side and demand-side barriers, the Maternal and Child Nutrition and Health Results Project will go a long way towards improving health and nutrition of vulnerable families.”</em></p><p>Under this project, health facilities will receive payments if they can show that their services have increased in number and improved in quality.&nbsp; Similarly, communities will receive payments if they can show that indicators of hygiene, sanitation, and health and nutrition behaviors have improved.&nbsp; Pregnant women will receive incentive payments for seeking antenatal care within the first trimester followed by three additional visits in the course of their pregnancy.&nbsp; Today’s project combines supply-side and demand-side interventions to enhance community nutrition and primary health care for women and children, who often bear the most severe consequences, in the poorest regions with a longer term goal of contributing to poverty reduction and shared prosperity.</p><p>* The World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA), established in 1960, helps the world’s poorest countries by providing grants and low to zero-interest loans for projects and programs that boost economic growth, reduce poverty, and improve poor people’s lives. IDA is one of the largest sources of assistance for the world’s 77 poorest countries, 39 of which are in Africa. Resources from IDA bring positive change for 2.8 billion people, the majority of whom live on less than $2 a day. Since 1960, IDA has supported development work in 112 countries. Annual commitments have averaged about $18 billion over the last three years, with about 50 percent going to Africa.</p></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-75632688559080883182015-04-27T18:42:00.009-07:002015-04-27T18:42:53.629-07:00Editor's choiceafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div><p><a href="http://ift.tt/WaSQ7p">Thomson Reuters</a> is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing <a href="http://ift.tt/XLrav1">investing news</a>, <a href="http://ift.tt/Q5pnJn">world news</a>, <a href="http://ift.tt/XLrcmG">business news</a>, <a href="http://ift.tt/WaSQ7t">technology news</a>, headline news, <a href="http://ift.tt/XLrav3">small business news</a>, news alerts, <a href="http://ift.tt/WaSRIj">personal finance</a>, <a href="http://ift.tt/XLrcCY">stock market</a>, and <a href="http://ift.tt/WaSRIl">mutual funds information</a> available on Reuters.com, <a href="http://ift.tt/XLrav5">video</a>, <a href="http://ift.tt/WaSRIn">mobile</a>, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an <a href="http://ift.tt/XLrcD0">Editorial Handbook</a> which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.</p><p>NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete <a target="_blank" href="http://ift.tt/WaSQnH">list of exchanges and delays, please click here</a>.</p></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-58560057183970370452015-04-27T18:42:00.007-07:002015-04-27T18:42:51.814-07:00Morocco Continues Its Renewable Push With Saudi-Backed Wind Projectafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div><p>Morocco continued its energy diversification push this week with a nod towards its renewable power options, with the announcement that Saudi Arabia-based ACWA Power will back wind projects in the country as a part of a broad investment plan.</p><p>According to local media <a href="http://ift.tt/1dmHzR3">reports</a>, Paddy Padmanathan, President and CEO of the company, announced that the Moroccan push was a part of a larger $12 billion investment plan sprawling across multplie countries, focused on current and ongoing energy projects.</p><p>The wind projects would add to the company’s Moroccan presence, which already includes a $2 billion contract to build two solar power plants in the southern city of Ourzazate. According to press reports, the two plants totaling 350 megawatts are the second phase of the 500MW Ouarzazate project, which aims at producing 2 gigawatts of solar energy by 2020.</p><p>Morrocco is heavily dependent on energy imports to meet its growing demand and has spent the last decade exploring new options to help reduce costly oil and coal imports, including supporting new exploration and production efforts, as well as renewable alternatives.</p><p>Recently, the North African nation has explored both traditional and green energy options, including new liquefied natural gas projects to allows access to a potentially cheaper, more flexible market. However, the country renewable push has garnered attention for its ‘go-it-alone’ approach and state-backing for significant energy goals. According to the Financial Times, <a href="http://ift.tt/1byc8SJ">Morocco</a> has the most ambituious clean energy target in the region and “is on track to have 42 per cent of its installed energy capacity dedicated to renewable sources by 2020. Of that, 2,000MW will come from solar.”</p><p>Morocco’s green energy goals continue to shape energy policy despite industry setbacks and challenges seen over the last few years. The country faced financial protests from potential European bakers of new energy projects in early 2014 due to concerns territorial concerns. According to Reuters, lending institutions including the World Bank, the European Investment Banks and the European Union had expressed concern about Morocco’s plans to extend traditional and renewable energy efforts into the Western Sahara.</p><p>Two years prior, Morocco also faced renewable setbacks when the proposed Desertec renewable plan, which would have supported solar efforts in North Africa to import to the European market, became financially infeasible for the country’s domestic energy goals.</p><p>Despite that push-back, Morocco has remained adamant that they can reach their renewable energy goals with or without European backing, with many pointing to Gulf funding as a remedy for any apprehension from the country’s northern neighbors. With Saudi companies now expanding their renewable financing footprint in the country, it appears that this assumption is well founded.</p></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-69863103772962398192015-04-27T18:42:00.005-07:002015-04-27T18:42:50.834-07:00On Native GroundTHE Stimulus Worked. Let's have More.africatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div id=""><strong><br />by Randolph T. Holhut<br />American Reporter Correspondent<br />Dummerston, Vt.<br />August 13, 2009</strong><p><strong><em>On Native Ground</em><br />THE STIMULUS WORKED. LET'S HAVE MORE.</strong></p><p class="c7"><a href="http://ift.tt/1dmHzAI" target="main">Back to home page</a></p><p class="c7"><a href="http://ift.tt/1byc8SF" target="_blank">Printable version of this story</a></p><p>DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- In August of 1983, Benigno Aquino, an opponent of Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos, returned home from three years in exile. He didn't even make it into town - he was shot and killed at the airport.</p><p>A few days later, his wife, Corazon, returned to lead his funeral procession. Millions joined her. Marcos called an election. Aquino opposed him. Marcos tried to steal the election. The rest is history.</p><p>"The lady in the yellow dress, simple, bespectacled, plain not just in her housewifery but also in her demeanor, (was) a contrast in every way to the stylish Imelda (Marcos), who was still stuffing the boudoirs of the presidential palace with frocks and furs and shoes, shoes, shoes," wrote The Economist in its obituary of Aquino last week. "The power, however, was with the people, and the people were with Cory."</p><p>Maria Corazon Sumulong Cojuangco Aquino, who died on August 1 at the age of 76, became the first female president of the Philippines and the first female president of any country in Asia. And the airport is now named after her husband.</p><p>Aquino showed that "nonviolent social change could no longer be dismissed as wishful thinking," wrote novelist and columnist James Carroll in the Boston Globe. "A modest woman who overcame her fear to speak truth and uphold justice started something that is not finished."</p><p>What happened in the Philippines has not yet happened in, say, Iran. But it gives us hope.</p><p>Another remarkable woman, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, died this week at the age of 88.</p><p>As a Kennedy, Shriver survived great trauma. But as the founder of the Special Olympics, her achievements possibly outshine even those of her accomplished male siblings. They certainly have touched, and changed, the lives of millions of people. The Special Olympics are now held in 160 countries. More than one million athletes participate.</p><p>Not all the remarkable women in the news are there because they died. New Supreme Court Justice Sonia Maria Sotomayor, 55, was sworn in on August 6th as the Court's 111th justice, its first Hispanic justice, and its third female justice. (Yes, only its third!)</p><p>Aside from her impressive academic credentials and resume, Sotomayor has now attracted widespread admiration for the graceful way she endured what was a remarkably silly confirmation process. Along the way, Hispanic women in New York are now proudly wearing t-shirts proclaiming they are also "Wise Latinas."</p><p>Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, also did herself - and all of us - proud this week.</p><p>On Tuesday, on her African trip, she met with Congolese President Joseph Kabila and traveled to a large camp outside the city of Goma, where about 18,000 displaced people have sought refuge from insurgents and other armed groups.</p><p>"She said the United States is offering Congo $17 million to fight sexual violence, including about $10 million to train doctors to treat victims of sexual attacks," reported National Public Radio's Corey Flintoff.</p><p>This offer was not widely reported by others in the media, who focused on a translator's error. But am I wrong in thinking that only a female secretary of state would have taken on this issue so directly?</p><p>Clinton also connected violence with the trade in "conflict minerals," such as tantalum, tungsten and tin, which are used in making components for electronic goods.</p><p>"Clinton's visit to Goma, aboard a United Nations plane, was the first by a U.S. secretary of state to the city that has been at the center of the long-running war," Flintoff reported. "According to the Associated Press, some of Clinton's top aides opposed the stop in Goma, citing concerns for her safety in one of Africa's most volatile war zones."</p><p>"It shows what a high priority this is for her," Jendayi Frazer, a former assistant secretary of state for African affairs during the Bush Administration, told Flintoff. "It's always very difficult to get clearance for a trip like this."</p><p>Here's a startling fact: according to projections by the U.S. Census, white Americans will be in the minority in the United States as early as 2042. And more than half of all U.S. children are expected to be from minority ethnic groups by 2023.</p><p>What is this country coming to? A black man as president. A Latina on the Supreme Court. Hillary Clinton as secretary of state running around Africa condemning rape. Nancy Pelosi running the House of Representatives and being third in line for the presidency. Gays getting married and having children.</p><p>No wonder Sarah Palin, Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck and Lou Dobbs feel as if the world is coming down around their ears. No wonder they distort, lie and incite hatred, rage and violence to keep even a semblance of their dwindling power.</p><p>Luckily, younger people overwhelmingly reject this kind of conservative manipulation.</p><p>The world has changed, and amid all the shouting, the lives and the lasting achievements of people like Aquino, Shriver, Sotomayor and Clinton give us a glimmer of hope for a better future.</p><p><em>Joyce Marcel is a journalist. Write her at joycemarcel@yahoo.com.</em></p><noscript><p><a href="http://ift.tt/1eXhR0b" target="new"><img src="http://ift.tt/1g7A804" border="0" alt="web-stat.com : counter and tracker" /></a></p></noscript><div class="c3"><p class="c9">Copyright 2015 <a class="c8" href="http://ift.tt/1eXhR0d">Joe Shea</a> The American Reporter. All Rights Reserved.</p></div><p class="c4"><a href="http://ift.tt/1g7Abc7" target="_top"><img src="http://ift.tt/1eXhTVD" alt="Site Meter" border="0" /></a></p></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-2524292016675357272015-04-27T18:42:00.003-07:002015-04-27T18:42:49.651-07:00Bottom Lineafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div><p class="p1">•FOREIGN AGENT. Former Rep. <strong>Ron Klink</strong> (D-Pa.), through <strong>Nelson Mullins Riley &amp; Scarborough,</strong> recently signed a contract to represent the government of the Republic of Malawi. The firm will be introducing the country’s president, Peter Mutharika, to members of Congress and “work to create a positive image for Malawi with the United States Government from both the Legislative and Executive branch,” according to forms filed with the Justice Department. “President Mutharika will eradicate corruption from the government and seek to bring the donor community, and U.S. financial assistance back to Malawi. Nelson Mullins understands that getting the donor dollars flowing to Malawi is of the utmost importance to the success of the new government.” The firm will also work on other economic issues for the country and facilitate meetings with top 2016 presidential contenders, the contract says.&nbsp;</p><p class="p1">Former Sen. <strong>Tom Daschle</strong> (D-N.D.) recently made a splash by filing his first lobbying registration for the country of Taiwan via the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office. He has now registered to represent Japan as well. The move comes as Japan is in the midst of high-level negotiations with U.S. officials about a bilateral trade deal, in addition to a much larger pact known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership.</p><p><span>ADVERTISEMENT</span></p>•EDUCATION. The <strong>Safe Campus Coalition</strong>, an informal group of sororities and fraternities, registered with Squire Patton Boggs to work on “campus safety and higher education” issues in front of Congress, according to disclosure forms. Lawmakers are working on the Higher Education Act reauthorization and recently introduced legislation about campus housing. <p class="p1">•TECHNOLOGY. <strong>Hewlett-Packard</strong> signed up with its ninth lobbying operation, adding solo advocate <strong>Daniel Kostenbauder</strong>, who formerly served as general tax counsel for the company. Although forms are dated November 2014, they recently popped up in a disclosure database run by the Senate. According to those forms, Kostenbauder will be working on issues related to “international taxation, tax reform, research and development tax credit, “ and general business tax issues. In December, Congress passed legislation to extend some 50 expired tax credits retroactively through 2014. The research and development credit was among the most coveted tax breaks among corporations.</p></div><div><noscript><p>Please enable JavaScript to view the <a href="http://ift.tt/1fDOaS2" target="_blank">featured perspectives by Versa.</a></p></noscript></div><div><div id="block-thehill-blocks-article-recommendation" class="block block-thehill-blocks first odd"><p class="recommendation-title">More in Lobbying Contracts</p><p class="read-more"><a href="http://ift.tt/1byc70V" title="Read Bottom Line">Read more »</a></p></div></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-72819294129036155562015-04-27T18:42:00.001-07:002015-04-27T18:42:48.658-07:00Hot Docs "Best of Enemies"africatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div><p><span class="st"><strong><em><a href="http://ift.tt/1dmHwVs" target="_blank">Amir</a> continues his coverage of Toronto's Hot Docs festival. Will he spot any future Oscar nominees?</em></strong></span></p><p><span class="st"><span class="full-image-float-left ssNonEditable"><img src="http://ift.tt/1JwcHuO" alt="" /></span>It is hard to imagine today that there was once an America where political debates in the media were sensational, not just sensationalized. Harder yet is to envision a time when conservative political commentators weren’t complete buffoons, but rather eloquent, smart thinkers. That is exactly the time that <strong><em>Best of Enemies</em></strong> transports us to, Robert Gordon and Morgan Neville’s film about the televised debates leading up to the 1968 Republican and Democratic national conventions. ABC, then trailing as America’s third network and in search of a ratings boost, decided to pit two of the country’s most famous commentators against one another: the liberal Gore Vidal and the conservative William F. Buckley Jr. The two were known to dislike each other and their pairing on live TV was sure to cause a stir.</span></p><p><span class="st">Their prediction proved to be correct when on the 8th&nbsp;night of a series of incendiary discussions, Buckley reacted to Vidal’s name-calling and being labeled a “crypto-Nazi” with a momentary burst of anger...</span></p><blockquote><p>Now listen, you queer, stop calling me a crypto-Nazi or I’ll sock you in the face and you’ll stay plastered.”</p></blockquote><p>Buckley regretted this lapse of judgment for the rest of his life and was haunted by memories of that night. Vidal, the more outrageous of the two characters, carried the memory with a triumphant smirk. <em>Best of Enemies</em> creates an energetically paced, consistently entertaining narrative out of these debates. It is formally trapped in the familiar structure of similar documentaries, with several talking head interviews that contextualize the significance of the debates and the ramifications of it for American TV and the two. Not all of these inserts seem necessary, though most of them – such as conversations with Buckley’s brother and TV executives who knew both commentators – are exciting. Still, the best parts of the films are excerpts from the original debates. The vicious and hilarious cat-fighting leaves one pining for that golden age of TV.</p><p><span class="st">A more unconventional structure is at play in <strong><em>The Nightmare</em></strong>, Rodney Ascher’s follow-up to the acclaimed <em>Room 237</em>. Based on the lives of eight people who suffer from sleep paralysis, the condition that was the inspiration behind <em>Nightmare on Elm Street</em>, the film explores the world of this strange and, literally, unbelievable disease. Those who suffer see all kinds of monsters and ghosts in their sleep, and they fall into paralysis at once, unable to move or talk at all as these demons infiltrate their bodies. Employing animated sequences and visual effects to show the nightmares of these eight people, Ascher’s film is the rare documentary that doubles as a horror film. As the subjects delve deeper into their nightly terrors, the film also raises the stakes, faithfully recreating the claustrophobic sense of indefensibility against these creatures.</span></p><p><span class="st">The most intriguing aspect of these horrific experiences is how much their share in common, not just in their nature, but in the specifics of the violent imagery. <em>The Nightmare</em> traces the origins of these visions and arrives not just at recent pop culture icons, but even classical art in which shared elements of sleep paralysis – demons with red eyes, black cats sitting on a dormant person’s chest – appear across works that were produced in different countries in different era. Whether it is the familiar imagery that feeds the nightmares of the subjects or whether it is artists who have brought to life visions that terrified them is the most interesting question the film raises. But beyond the curiosity of this rare condition, Ascher doesn’t know how to deal with the material. The film touches on a superficial level the medical, religious and personal reasons behind each subject’s condition, but never fully engages with them on a deeper level. While the oddity of the topic and the horror scenes are intermittently interesting, they are not enough to keep the film from falling into a repetitive cycle of tedium from which it can never escape.</span></p><p><span class="st"><strong><em>The Dictator’s Hotel</em></strong></span> <span class="st">proves a much more rewarding experience, despite its concise, 15-minute running time. Directed by Florian Hoffman, this one visits a newly built but completely abandoned hotel in the Central African Republic, owned by Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi before his death. Still supervised by its diligent staff, the hotel’s equipment and furniture have never been touched, but it remains ready to serve at a moment’s notice. The building’s ostentatious structure and vast landscape is splendid and at utter odds with the poverty that surrounds it, though rather cleverly, we are only exposed to the surroundings through the iron gates of the hotel and the few words spoken by one of the employees. This brief visit of the building, during which a North African hotel manager acts as tour guide, is haunting, serving as a reminder of the atrocities committed by political leaders in the region and the sense of entitlement that at once secludes and protectes them from the abject destitution of people in their countries. That the film does this with so few references, and no visual depictions, of political or economic turmoil, and remains entirely within the confines of a single building, is truly extraordinary. <em>The Dictator’s Hotel</em> might not travel outside of specialized festival circuits, but it’s a sharp, humorous and unique film that deserves a much bigger audience.</span></p></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-53433399472980103482015-04-27T17:44:00.011-07:002015-04-27T17:44:43.550-07:00Internal Affairs minister Aronda intervenes in Kipsiro's death threats caseafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div id="article_summmary"><p class="newstype">In Summary</p><div><p>Athletics. Assistant Inspector of Police, Edward Ochom, leads probe team investigating sexual harassment case that has rocked Uganda’s athletics for over a year and death threats on Kipsiro’s life.</p></div></div><div id="article_text"><div><p><strong>KAMPALA.</strong> Internal Affairs Minister, General Aronda Nyakairima, has instituted a committee to investigate the scandals in Uganda’s athletics. The probe, headed by Assistant Inspector of Police, Edward Ochom, is focusing on sexual harassment allegations against coach Peter Wemali and death threats to star runner Moses Kipsiro.<br />Gen Aronda institute a probe committee after Kipsiro reported to him that his life was in danger. The runner said he received a life-threatening message on his mobile phone, which forced him to withdraw from the World Cross-country Championships held March 28 in China. Commonwealth champion Kipsiro said he suspected Wemali, now on remand on charges of rape and defilement, to have sent the message.<br />Early last year, Kipsiro demanded that Uganda Athletics Federation (UAF) and Uganda Police punish Wemali, who he accused of sexually harassing junior female runners. UAF said they cleared Wemali after an investigation while a police report indicated there wasn’t adequate evidence to prosecute the coach in court much as they found out that he made sexual advances towards a female runner and used vulgar language during training. Kipsiro was dissatisfied with the manner in which the case was handled. He also complained that Wemali was harassing his family. “I have decided to set up a committee to investigate the matter, establish the facts and come up with recommendations,” Gen Aronda stated in a letter to the Inspector General of Police, Gen Kale Kayihura and members of the committee.<br />Ochom’s team has already interviewed several stakeholders including UAF leaders, Kipsiro and Assistant Inspector of Police, Andrew Sorowen, who oversees sports in the Force. The probe team heads to Kapchorwa this week to interview other stakeholders.<br />“We want to help the nation by finding out the truth,” Ochom said during an interaction with this writer yesterday. Ochom’s team is expected to produce a report in about a fortnight.</p></div><div><p><strong>The Committee</strong><br />Edward Ochom (AIGP), Jimmy Haguma (Acting Commissioner of Police, Electronic and Counter Measures Department UPF), Charles Erechu (Detective Superitendant of Police, CII), Emmy Twagira Tuzinde (Head of DCIC Intelligence Unit, Ministry of Internal Affairs) and Stephen Okello (Principle Legal Officer, Ministry of Internal Affairs)</p></div><div><p><em>sbashaija@ug.nationmedia.com</em></p></div></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-859336403892815612015-04-27T17:44:00.009-07:002015-04-27T17:44:43.078-07:00President wrong on al-Shabaab defeatafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div id="article_text"><div><p>I would like to respond to the article in Daily Monitor of April 27 titled, ‘‘Al-Shabaab is defeated-Museveni’’. In the article President Museveni bases his argument on the fact that al-Shabaab is only targeting civilians as a sign of defeat.<br />Just because al-Shabaab is attacking civilians does not in any way make them weak or defeated. We should actually establish the root causes of the al-Shabaab attacks. The attack on civilians does not make them weak but it is one of the methods they use to intimidate the population, cause regime unpopularity, destabilising or destroying the foundation of political, economic and social structures of a country. I am sure if they have not been successful at this in Uganda and Kenya, at least it is more evident in Somalia. We need to attack the root causes of al-Shabaab in order to consider it defeated.<br /><strong><em>Solomon Mbubi,</em></strong><br /><strong><em>solombubi@gmail.com</em></strong></p></div></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-71127960828597483382015-04-27T17:44:00.007-07:002015-04-27T17:44:42.643-07:00How secure is your workplace?africatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div id="article_text"><div><p>Today is World Day for Safety and Health at Work, which calls for everyone to join in the culture of occupational health and safety.<br />Do we prioritise safety at work? International Labour Organisation, explains the national occupational safety and health culture, as one in which the right to a secure and healthy working environment is respected at all tiers, where governments, employers and workers actively participate in ensuring a dependable and tidy working environment through an organisation of defined rights, obligations and duties, and where the highest priority is accorded to the principle of prevention.<br />In 2011, at one of the conferences organised by the Makerere University College of Health Sciences, and the Uganda National Association of Community and Occupational Health, I was tasked to talk about the overview of occupational health and safety in Uganda. I spoke about Uganda’s occupational health situation, and the administration of the policies. The general feeling was that Uganda has done a good job documenting policies such as the Occupational Health and Safety Act; however, employers and employees may not be well familiarised with their rights and responsibilities.<br />The other impression was the limited human resource for ensuring health and safety. For instance, there were merely a smattering of health inspectors and environmental health practitioners working in the occupational health and safety department, and more so, they were localised in Kampala. This prompted me to think of what happens to workers beyond Kampala.<br />For us to live a culture, which is sensitive to health in workplaces, my proposition is that everyone should be mindful of the dangers and hazards related to a given workplace. Employers and employees need to rethink; could our workplaces expose us to physical hazards; such as: high noise levels, extreme heat, fire, radiation, cuts and sharp instruments? How much of the vibrations is exposed to machine operators, and is our sitting position a risk to back problems, or could we be at risk of chemicals, such as pesticides, flammable liquids, or gases? On that point are also biological hazards; such as: exposures to bacteria and viruses. Good enough, there are ways of eliminating, reducing and protecting ourselves from these hazards.<br />Human resource personal could also function to impede psychosocial hazards, for example by ensuring that violence or bullying does not pass at work place. In some cases, work mates or bosses have abuse employees. In observing the culture of health in our works, therefore, our cognition, belief, morals, law, customs, habits and practices, should be in line with prevention of disease and infirmity, and the provision of completeness of physical, mental and social wellbeing of all the actors.<br /><strong><em>Joseph Byonanebye,</em></strong><br /><strong><em>jopheb2@yahoo.com</em></strong></p></div></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-14897708747145966782015-04-27T17:44:00.005-07:002015-04-27T17:44:42.022-07:00WTO welcomes Seychelles as its 161st memberafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div id="Content"><p>GENEVA, April 27 (Xinhua) -- The World Trade Organization (WTO) on Monday welcomed Seychelles as its 161st member, ending 20 years of negotiating its accession terms.</p><p>"I am delighted to welcome the Republic of Seychelles as the 161st member of the WTO," said WTO director-general Roberto Azevedo.</p><p>"This is great news for Seychelles' economy and, therefore, for the people of Seychelles. It is also a boost for the WTO and a vote of confidence in the Organization, as we redouble our efforts to complete the Doha Round of negotiations," said Azevedo.</p><p>Seychelles on Sunday officially became a WTO member after the 30-day countdown to its WTO membership was activated on March 27.</p><p>On March 25, President of Seychelles James Michel signed the "instrument of acceptance" of Seychelles' accession protocol, confirming its membership terms, at a plenary meeting of the cabinet of ministers in Victoria, Seychelles.</p><p>"This is a major step forward in the trade integration of Seychelles into the rules-based multilateral trading system and the global economy," said Seychelles Minister of Finance, Trade and the Blue Economy Jean Paul Adam.</p></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-73371057679336385942015-04-27T17:44:00.003-07:002015-04-27T17:44:41.421-07:00Save mothers, guarantee life to their babiesafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div><p><em>Dear Tingasiga,</em><br />When Leonida Kobusingye, 27, entered Fort Portal Regional Referral Hospital (Buhinga) last week, she was looking forward to the birth of her third child with the joyful anticipation common to all mothers.<br />In a few days, she hoped, she and her husband would take home their new bundle of joy and present him or her to the siblings, two girls of five and two years.<br />Mr Saturday Rukundo wa Zirahagye, her 35-year old husband, must have had mixed emotions. His brother, who died a few days before Kobusingye’s labour, had just been buried in Mparo, Rukiga, Kigezi. Not even the birth of his child would ease the pain of losing a brother.<br />His thoughts must have been with his own father, Mr Narais Zirahagye, who, like most Ugandans, spent more time in mourning than celebration.<br />The birth of the baby would bring smiles to the old man and other bereaved relatives.<br />It would certainly bring a smile to Kobusingye’s widowed mother. You see Kobusingye was an only child.<br />Everyone kept their mobile phones charged, ready to receive the news from Fort Portal.<br />When the news came, it was that Kobusingye had died, along with her baby, victims of preventable complications of childbirth.<br />According to Zirahagye, his daughter-in-law had been in labour at Buhinga Hospital for one-and-a-half days. Delivery by caesarean section was accomplished, but the baby died. Kobusingye bled profusely, resulting in her death.<br />The family does not know what happened. Robert Boy Zirahagye, Kobusingye’s brother-in-law, told me that the baby died because of “a problem with the umbilical cord,” which does not say much.<br />News of Kobusingye’s death hit me hard, not because Zirahagye is my friend, but because she, along with another 15 women who died on the same day due to pregnancy-related causes, did not have to.<br />Based on the information that the family has shared with me, the deaths of this young woman and her child were preventable.<br />Replace the name Kobusingye with Akello, Acanit, Ajaruva, Emojung, Kisembo, Naikoba, Nanziri, Onzia or Wesesa, the story is the same across the country, as it is in most of sub-Saharan Africa.<br />Women of 15-49 years continue to have an unacceptably high death rate due to preventable pregnancy related causes.<br />We lose 438 Ugandan mothers per 100,000 live births every year, a figure pretty much unchanged in nearly 40 years. Our hope had been that by 2015, this maternal mortality rate would have fallen to about 211 per 100,000 live births.<br />Likewise, babies continue to die around the time of their birth at very high rates.<br />Uganda’s perinatal mortality rate (stillbirths and baby deaths between seven completed months [28 weeks] of pregnancy and seven completed days after birth) is 40 per 1,000 pregnancies that reach at least 7 months. The most dangerous places to be pregnant in Uganda are the West, South West and central regions, with perinatal mortality rates of 54, 48 and 47 per 1,000 pregnancies, respectively. The lowest rate is in Northern Uganda, reported to be 22.<br />This is a story we have told in this column several times. It is a story we shall keep telling, for it reminds us that in 2015, the target year of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the dream of drastically improving the health of women and their babies remains unrealised.<br />This is not due to lack of knowledge or documented pathways to achieving these modest goals. The Uganda government and the health care development partners have excellent policies and programmes in place.<br />The challenge is to collectively embrace the necessary cultural change that will enable us to invest our time, our skills, our resources and our minds in a national programme that translates our sentiments into action.<br />Space does not allow a thorough discussion of the contributors and possible solutions to these high death rates.<br />Suffice to say that the government must increase spending on health to a minimum of 15 per cent of the total national budget. The bulk of the increased spending should be invested in very well-trained, skilled well-paid ethically committed multidisciplinary teams of health professionals whose brief is to ensure best outcomes for mothers and their babies.<br />Those charged with responsibility to provide service to mothers and babies must be held accountable for any actions that put lives at risk.<br />A truly regionalised and interlinked maternal-child health programme, complete with a reliable ambulance transport system, is an essential component of a successful approach to the problem.<br />Whereas the government already mandates that all maternal and perinatal deaths be reported and reviewed, there remains a significant opportunity of improvement in this area.<br />The death reviews are not designed to lay blame or point fingers. They are a vital means of identifying gaps and recommending corrective measures so as to improve outcomes.<br />In a telephone conversation with Mr Zirahagye yesterday, he told me that the family had many questions and were hopeful that there would be an independent death review and a report on the death of his daughter-in-law and grandchild.<br />Nothing can bring Kobusingye and her baby back. However, Mr Zirahagye said: “This has happened to me, but it should not happen to somebody else.</p></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-73046953471070719762015-04-27T17:44:00.001-07:002015-04-27T17:44:40.882-07:00Police fuelling Muslim wrangles, says Mufti Mubajjeafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <p id="photo_article_caption">Sheikh Shaban Ramadhan Mubajje (with microphone) leads Muslims during Juma prayers in Mbarara Municipality last Friday. PHOTO BY COLLEB MUGUME &nbsp;</p><p>By&nbsp;FELIX AINEBYOONA &amp; COLLEB MUGUME<br />Posted&nbsp; Tuesday, April 28&nbsp; 2015&nbsp;at&nbsp; 01:00</p><div id="article_summmary"><p class="newstype">In Summary</p><div><p>Sheikh Shaban Ramadhan Mubajje says some police officers enjoy seeing Muslims fight among themselves.</p></div></div><div id="article_text"><div><p><strong>MBARARA-</strong> The Mufti of Uganda, Sheikh Shaban Ramadhan Mubajje, has accused some top police officers of fanning divisions within the Muslim community.</p></div><div><p>Speaking during Juma prayers at Nusrat Grounds, Nyamityobora in Mbarara Municipality last Friday, Sheikh Mubajje said some police officers enjoy seeing Muslims fight among themselves.</p></div><div><p>“There is a situation where some people don’t want Muslims to unite. Some are Muslims while others are not but I request those top police officials who are trying to sabotage Muslim unity to stop. I will mention their names when time is ripe,” Sheikh Mubajje said.</p></div><div><p>“Some top police officials only become happy seeing Muslims divided because that is where they see a chance to torture them. There are those waiting for that time; you have seen closure of Islamic schools and people being arrested and detained but we want the truth to come to light,” he added.</p></div><div><p>Sheikh Mubajje also asked security organs to stop arresting suspected criminals before carrying out investigations, saying the practice will make government unpopular. His concern was in reference to the recent arrest of clerics suspected to be responsible for a spate of killings of Muslim leaders in different parts of the country.</p></div><div><p><strong>Police deny claims</strong><br />When contacted, police spokesperson Fred Enanga said the Force is not an enemy of Muslims, saying they follow results of investigations.<br />“It is basically the preliminary investigations that lead to identities of the suspects and recovery of exhibits. We don’t target individuals; we go with individuals who are in conflict with the law,” Mr Enanga said.</p></div><div><p>Sheikh Mubajje urged Muslims in Mbarara not to listen to the Kibuli Mosque sect, which he said has refused to unite with the Old Kampala group.</p></div><div><p><em>editorial@ug.nationmedia.com</em></p></div></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-25862583985421140892015-04-27T17:07:00.007-07:002015-04-27T17:07:31.225-07:00NLC tasks Borno govt on N18,000 minimum wage for council workersafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div id="entryContainer"><p>By Ndahi Marama</p><p><strong>M</strong><strong>AIDUGURI</strong>—The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Borno State chapter has called on the state government to implement the N18,000 minimum wage for local government workers workers in the state.</p><p>The Chairman of the congress, Mr. Titus Ali Abana who made this call in an interview with&nbsp; newsmen in Maiduguri yesterday, said though the state government was doing its best considering the security challenges, it still needed to implement the minimum wage to carter for the welfare of the workforce done in the area of workers welfare, more especially the implementation of minimum wage and the re-engagement of workers of Borno state Hotels, International Hotels and the state Housing cooperation.</p><p>Abana who was just re-elected at the weekend said “We also want to appeal to the state government to pay the outstanding 18 month minimum wage arriers for primary school teachers and local government staffs.”</p><p>The NLC chairman also appealed to Governor Kashim Shettima to pay much priority to the workers welfare.</p><p>He also urged&nbsp; Governor Shettima to look into the case of the workers that are disengaged from Maiduguri International Hotels, Borno investment company working in the state -owned&nbsp; revenue generation agencies/parastatals&nbsp; that have now became moribund.</p><p>“Even though these workers were supposed to work and generate salaries for themselves, the government should still look into the possibilities of bringing them into mainstream ministries and be paid their full salary because of the situation in the state,” Abana said.</p><div class="crunchify-social"><h5>SHARE ON</h5><a class="crunchify-link crunchify-facebook" href="http://ift.tt/1OZVFDw" target="_blank">Facebook</a><a class="crunchify-link crunchify-googleplus" href="http://ift.tt/1Oxcv1K" target="_blank">Google+</a><a class="crunchify-link crunchify-buffer" href="http://ift.tt/1OZVEQ5" target="_blank">Buffer</a></div></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8594978121389099633.post-81141802982245981732015-04-27T17:07:00.005-07:002015-04-27T17:07:29.399-07:00Burundi: Crackdown on Protestersafricatodayonline.blogspot.com - <div><p>(Nairobi) – The Burundian government is cracking down on activists, journalists, and demonstrators following protests over President Pierre Nkurunziza’s decision to run for a third term.&nbsp;</p><p>The announcement on April 25, 2015, by the ruling National Council for the Defense of Democracy-Forces for the Defense of Democracy (CNDD-FDD) that Nkurunziza would be its candidate in June elections triggered widespread demonstrations in the capital, Bujumbura, on April 26 and 27.</p><p>“The Burundian authorities should respect people’s right to demonstrate peacefully,” said <a>Daniel Bekele</a>, Africa director at Human Rights Watch.&nbsp;“Police in Burundi should be given strict instructions to avoid excessive force.”</p><p>A heavy police presence prevented many demonstrators from reaching the city center, but there were numerous clashes between police and demonstrators in the suburbs, with police using teargas, water cannons, and live ammunition, Burundian and international journalists and human rights activists told Human Rights Watch. Some demonstrators threw stones at the police and burned tires in the streets. Burundian journalists and other local sources reported that at least two&nbsp;people were shot dead and others injured during the clashes.</p><p>On April 27, police arrested a leading human rights defender, Pierre Claver Mbonimpa, who had gone to give an interview at Media House (la Maison de la Presse<em>),</em> a gathering place for local media. The police kicked and roughed up Mbonimpa, aged 66, journalists at the scene told Human Rights Watch. Mbonimpa, <a>president of the human rights group APRODH,</a> has been an outspoken critic of abuses by the government, including during recent events.</p><p>“The Burundian authorities should immediately release Mbonimpa and let him carry out his human rights work,” Bekele said.</p><p>On April 26, the government banned live reporting from the sites of the demonstrations by three popular radio stations – Radio publique africaine (RPA), Radio Isanganiro, and Radio Bonesha FM, suspended their broadcasts outside the capital, and cut off their telephone land lines, journalists told Human Rights Watch.&nbsp;On the afternoon of April 27, the government completely shut down RPA’s broadcasts, including in the capital, and shut down la Maison de la Presse.</p><p>“These radio stations in Burundi are doing their job by covering the news,” <a>Bekele</a> said. “Government restrictions on communications not only violate basic media freedom but deprive many Burundians of the right to information about events that affect them directly.”</p></div><img src="http://ift.tt/l3uKDI" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br />Brian harrodhttps://plus.google.com/105099566216529630677noreply@blogger.com0